Spit back water, oil and fuel re-cycle

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates primarily to a spit back water, oil and fuel re-cycle for internal combustion engines. The device forming the embodiment of this invention preferably may consist of a rectangular valve housing mounting an automatically operable spit back needle valve and an exhaust pipe. The needle valve in question has a vertical shaft which may be provided with a flipper plate. The latter can be swivelled by means of the action of the air entering the housing and being directed against a stationary baffle plate. The flipper plate with its spit back needle valve is automatically closed and opened. The aforesaid action exhausting the residue of oil in the housing and delivering it back to the engine.

United States Patent Heintzelman Jan. 1,1974

1 1 SPIT BACK WATER, OIL AND FUEL RE-CYCLE [22] Filed: July 6, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 159,980

[52] U.S. Cl 55/218, 55/420, 55/421,

123/73 R [51] Int. Cl. F02m 35/00 [58] Field of Search 123/119, 73 V, 73 R,

[56] References Cited OTHER PUBLICATIONS Fuel Systems for Recreational Vehicles, D. Donovan, Jan. 12-16, 1970, S.A.E. Pub. No. 700164.

Primary ExaminerTim R. Miles Assistant Examiner-William Cuchlinski, Jr.

[57] ABSTRACT The present invention relates primarily to a spit back water, oil and fuel re-cycle for internal combustion engines. The device forming the embodiment of this invention preferably may consist of a rectangular valve housing mounting an automatically operable spit back needle valve and an exhaust pipe. The needle valve in question has a vertical shaft which may be provided with a flipper plate. The latter can be swivelled by means of the action of the air entering the housing and being directed against a stationary baffle plate. The flipper plate with its spit back needle valve is automatically closed and opened. The aforesaid action exhausting the residue of oil in the housing and delivering it back to the engine.

3 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures SPIT BACK WATER, OIL AND FUEL RE-CYCLE The present invention relates to safety valves, and more particularly it relates to a spit back water and oil, or fuel recycle. The device in question may readily facilitate the re-cycling of unused engine residue and also may prevent excessive polution of the air. The present invention, furthermore, is a safety factor. When the operator of the engine arrives to his destination, he quite often builds a fire to warm himself. In the past, with the fumes from the exhaust covering his clothing, the operator was in danger of catching fire. However, with the new fuel re-cycling device such an accident may not take place. Preferably the spit back device aforesaid may be constructed of a noncorrosive nickel steel or the like material. However, any other suitable material may be used as long as it is strong, inexpensive and durable.

Exhaustive experiments have indicated that in old fuel re-cycling technics the discharge of expanded engine wastes into the air endangered the operator by soiling his clothes and causing fires. To prevent the.

aforesaid disadvantage the air which is sucked into the housing of the present re-cycling device may be passed over and across a baffle and may be directed against a swinging flipper plate. Said flipper plate may be held upon an upright shaft which at its bottom has a spit back needle to operate a needle valve. The valve in question may be operable by the carburetor intake from the running engine, and isso constructed as to move the spit back needle up-and-down, while at the same time the needle shaft. is twisted slightly. The lowering and the raising motion of the needle shaft and its twisting action is made possible through the judicious use of coil and helical springs. If necessary a weight may be added on top of the needle shaft to produce the proper contact between the valve seat and the spit back needle. And a pipe fitting or an exhaust line may be secured to the re-cycling device to serve as an outlet for the waste material which may be allowed to drip directly to the ground or collect into a wastes container.

Due to the fact that the spit back needle shaft moves up-and-down during the re-cycling operation, a slot may be provided in the flipper plate so as to clear the fastening screws (which secure the flipper plate to the vertical shaft). The flipper plate which is form of a single piece of circular steel can thus remain stationary within the device while the shaft may slightly move in the vertical plane. The spit back needle shaft when it is in its raised position opens the needle valve. When the shaft is in its raised position (with the needle valve open) the unused residue from the engine is pumped through the open valve and can be delivered back to the engine for re-cycle, thus increasing the overall efficiency of the engine.

An object of the present invention is to provide a device of the classdescribed which is inexpensive to manufacture, and easy and safe to operate.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a spit back needle valve formed of a vertical shaft which may be provided with a needle-shaped extension fitting snugly inside a needle valve seat. The shaft in question may be raised and lowered to close and to open said needle valve.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a flipper plate mounted to said vertical shaft and being operable by the action of the intake air entering the device in question.

A further object of this invention is to provide spring means to operate said spit back needle valve stem in such a manner as to permit automatic controllable raising and lowering of said needle stem or shaft and the closing and opening of the valve aforesaid.

Other objects will be seen as the description of this specification will proceed. This invention also consists in certain other features of construction and the combination and arrangement of several parts to be hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing, and in the specification, and specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

In describing the invention in detail, references will be had to the accompanying drawing where like characters and numerals will denote like or corresponding parts throughout the several views in which:

FIG. I is a side elevational perspective view showing the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a section taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. L, showing the manner in which the flipper plate may be secured to the vertical needle valve shaft and may be operable by the springs;

FIG. 3 is a section taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2, showing additional pertinent details of the construction of the device, and the manner in which the flipper plate may be mounted in the baffle plate manifold;

FIG. 4 is a section taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3, showing the flipper plate being housed inside the baffle plate manifold; and

FIG. 5 is an enlarged section through the needle valve showing the valve in closed position, and in open position (dotted lines).

It is to be understood that the present form of disclosure is merely for the purpose of illustration, and that there might be various modifications thereof, without departing from the spirit of the invention as herein set forth in the drawing.

Referring now to the embodiment of the present invention, and more particularly to FIG. 1, which shows the best application of my fuel re-cycling device, it comprises, in combination, the valve housing 10, which may be formed of the rectangular box having three upright sides ll, 12, and 13 respectively, and the bottom 14 and the top 15. A rectangular cover 16 having four flanged sides 17 may be fitted snugly over the open end of the housing 10, and by means of the machine screws 18 may be secured thereto. The cover 18 may have a plurality of small openings or holes 19 which may serve as air vents or air intake so as to permit air to be sucked into the housing 10. If necessary, however, the air vents may be formed instead in a separate perforated cover 20 (not shown) which can be inserted into a round opening (not shown) in the cover 16.

It can be discerned from FIG. 1 that the valve housing 10 may be fashioned or fastened to a partition 21 or may be held directly to the engine casting or the carburetor casting 22, shown in the drawing in a conventional fashion.

Relative to FIG. 2 (which is a section on the line 2-2 of FIG. I) it can be seen that the valve housing 10, at its lower end 14 may be provided with an opening or hole 22 to hold the threaded end of the valve back needle seat 23. Furthermore it can be discerned that there is a vertical spit back needle shaft 24 which upon its upper section 24a, by means of a pair of machine screws 25, may support the flipper plate 26 which in this case may be a circular (disk) plate. The flipper plate 26 has an elongated slot 26a into which are fitted the shank ends of the fastening screws 25 in such a manner as to permit the shaft 24 to slide in a vertical plane relative to the plate 26.

The flipper plate 26 may be mounted in such a manner as to fit snugly within the configuration of the elongated and cylindrical air manifold 27. The latter may be secured to the cover 16 and may be an integral part thereto. In the process of assemblying the cylindrical manifold to the housing the former may be provided with a longitudinal clearance slot 27a into which is fitted the upper section 240 of the spit back shaft 24 to turn freely.

The upright spit back valve shaft 24 may be supported inside the housing 10 by means of the vertical bushing member 28. A cylindrical filter screen 29 can be mounted around the bushing 28 substantially as indicated in FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively to help filter the oil residue before it is returned to the engine (not shown). Upon the upper extension of the bushing 28 there is an extension 30, while a sleeve member 31 is made fast to the spit back shaft 24 by means of screws (not shown). Between the sleeve 31 and the upright extension 30 there is a clearance space 32 which provides ample room for a helical spring 33. One end 330 (not shown) of the spring 33 may be secured to the bushing 30, while the opposite and 33b (not shown) may be fastened to the sleeve member 31. Furthermore there may be provided a length of a coiled spring 34. The latter has one end 34a secured to the vertical stationary lug 35, while its opposite end 33b (not shown) is secured to the plate member 36 on the sleeve 31. Both springs (33 and 34) apply spring tension to the spit back shaft 24 so as to help rotate it and turn the flipper plate 26 as required during the operational sequence of the flipper valve.

It can be readily discerned that in the inner space of the circular manifold 27 there is mounted a baffle plate 37 which is secured in such a manner as to permit the entry of air into the valve housing 10, substantially as indicated in FIG. 4. The valve seat 23 may be secured to the valve housing 10 by means of the fastening nut 23a (see FIGS. 2 and 3, inclusive).

More particularly referring to FIG. 5 (which is an enlarged cross-section through the needle valve 23) the latter may be formed of the threaded valve extension 37 which by means of the fastening nut 23a is made secure to the bottom 14 of the valve housing 10. It can be discerned also that the needle valve 23 may be provided with an upright extension or bushing 38 upon which is wound the cylindrical filter screen 29. The shaft stem 24b of the upright spit back needle shaft 24 enters the opening 30 in the bushing 38 which ends lower into the tapered needle valve seat proper 40. The spit back shaft extension 24b has a tapered end which fits snugly within the needle valve seat 40, substantially as indicated in FIG. 5 so as to form the needle valve.

From the above it is realized that when the spit back shaft 24 by means of its flipper plate 26 swings (when air enters the housing 10) this action will raise or lower the needle valve 39 from its seat 40 (see dotted lines). As the shaft 24 is under the influence of either one of the springs 33 and 34, the flipper plate will return to its original position prior to the entry of the air into the housing 10. When, however, the air pressure is released, the shaft 24 returns to its original position. The process above described repeats itself on and off again and again, with the valve being alternately opened and closed by the spit back valve stem 24. The residue of the re-cycling can be delivered from the housing 10 (by means of the return pipe not shown) back to the engine proper.

A careful examination of the foregoing description in conjunction with the invention as illustrated in the drawing, will enable the reader to obtain a clear understanding and impression of the features of merit and novelty, sufficient to clarify the construction of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

Minor changes in shape, size and materials, and rearrangement of parts, may be resorted to in actual practice, as long as no departure is made from the invention claimed.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, comprising, in combination, a valve housing having an intake and an air exhaust opening, a circular manifold mounted in said housing, said circular manifold including a clearance slot in flow communication with the lower portion of said housing, a drain valve in the bottom of said housing including a valve seat, a vertical spit back shaft in said housing, said shaft mounted to swivel in said circular manifold, the lower section of said shaft having a needle valve stem which fits snugly into said valve seat, said valve being closed during operation of said device; the upper end of said shaft having a flipper plate, said plate mounted snugly to turn inside said circular manifold, said flipper plate contacting said baffle plate so as to permit the entry of air into said valve housing, spring means attached to said vertical shaft and to a stationary shaft support member in the lower portion of said housing, said spring means operating in response to the rotation of the vertical shaft to open and close said valve, said flipper plate being positioned so that when rotated by said shaft the entry of air into said valve housing is prevented.

2. The combination to claim 1 wherein said spring means is held by one end thereof to a stationary loop, while at the other end is fastened to said vertical shaft.

3. The combination according to claim 1 and further comprising a filter screen in said valve housing to permit filtering of the residue fuel oil prior to the recycling operation when said valve is opened to discharge residual fuel oil from said housing to an engine. 

1. In a device of the class described, comprising, in combination, a valve housing having an intake and an air exhaust opening, a circular manifold mounted in said housing, said circular manifold including a clearance slot in flow communication with the lower portion of said housing, a drain valve in the bottom of said housing including a valve seat, a vertical spit back shaft in said housing, said shaft mounted to swivel in said circular manifold, the lower section of said shaft having a needle valve stem which fits snugly into said valve seat, said valve being closed during operation of said device; the upper end of said shaft having a flipper plate, said plate mounted snugly to turn inside said circular manifold, said flipper plate contacting said baffle plate so as to permit the entry of air into said valve housing, spring means attached to said vertical shaft and to a stationary shaft support member in the lower portion of said housing, said spring means operating in response to the rotation of the vertical shaft to open and close said valve, said flipper plate being positioned so that when rotated by said shaft the entry of air into said valve housing is prevented.
 2. The combination to claim 1 wherein said spring means is held by one end thereof to a stationary loop, while at the other end is fastened to said vertical shaft.
 3. The combination according to claim 1 and further comprising a filter screen in said valve housing to permit filtering of the residue fuel oil prior to the re-cycling operation when said valve is opened to discharge residual fuel oil from said housing to an engine. 